


Unbreakable

by Ending_Daley



Series: The Sun And Stars And All That Which Hovers Above Us [3]
Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Baby Fic, F/M, good god I'm drowning in hayffie hell please don't save me, this has been completed since Feb and I just found it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-05
Updated: 2015-10-05
Packaged: 2018-04-25 00:15:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,421
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4939375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ending_Daley/pseuds/Ending_Daley
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Helios has a habit of carrying his two-week-old sister around the house. It makes his mother fret.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unbreakable

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so, it's almost November which means its almost time for Mockingjay Part 2. The more I think about that, the more I remember that I'm a hayffie shipper who needs to stop hibernating. 
> 
> I was going through my hayffie folder and found this completed piece amongst about five half completed fics. Which, I might actually dust off and try to finish - at least between my duty to finish my clawen prompts.

She heard her son enter the kitchen, his little feet stomping on the floor with an unusually heavy gait. Effie turned slowly, perched on the kitchen bench in order to reach the highest shelf in the cupboard.

‘Oh, oh, ‘lios,’ she shrieked, fidgeting on the counter, trapped momentarily. She couldn’t get down, not safely and quickly all the same. She held her hands steady, palms flat towards the three year old, ‘stop.’ She was firm, ‘don’t drop her, sweetheart.’ Helios stopped toddling towards her, face drawn with confusion.

He was holding his two week old baby sister, his arms wrapped around her chest to hold her up. ‘’lene!’ he grinned at his mother, shifting his arms as though trying to hold her up higher.

Effie smiled at him, her usual bright, happy smile. He was so proud of his sister, ‘I know, baby, she’s your ‘lene.’ He only grinned back at her, the smile fading slowly as she plucked the baby from his arms. ‘Why isn’t your father watching you? He was supposed to be watching you.’ Effie grumbled to herself as she took Helios’ hand and led him through the house in search of Haymitch.

The man in question, her beloved husband, was practically snoring on the couch, one of Helios’ toy trucks sitting on his chest, following the rise and fall of his breathing. ‘Haymitch Abernathy!’ she shrieked, Capitol seeping back into her voice as she stood, baby held in one arm, child’s hand in the other.

Haymitch startled, limbs flying as he threw himself off the couch. She didn’t give him time to nurse the injuries he procured from scattered toys, or the opportunity to let words leave his mouth. ‘You were supposed to be watching them!’ she didn’t yell, only added a layer of anger to her voice instead. There was no need to frighten the children. ‘You were supposed to watch them! You know what he’s like with her! He’ll drop her one day and it won’t be pretty, Haymitch, I asked you to _watch him_.’

Helios’ endeavour to pick up his sister and carry her around the house was not a one off occasion.

The toddler was enamoured with his baby sister. Absolutely one hundred and ten percent in love with her. Peeta had brought the boy by after his sister was born in the early hours of one winter morning two weeks prior. Helios had climbed up onto his mother’s bed with a hesitant ease. He was cautious, but excited for this _little sister or brother_ his parents had been talking about for months. Effie had placed the baby girl in her big brother’s arms steadily, one arm around his back and the other on her new daughter’s head as she watched her babies meet for the first time.

‘Her name is Selene,’ Effie whispered into her boy’s ear as she watched his bright blue eyes stare. He watched the baby for a moment, both of them unmoving until Selene moved, a little arm stretching above her head before falling on her mouth, her tiny eyes fluttering open as she did so.

Helios gasped at his sister, his little mouth falling open. He giggled at her, his happy little chuckles as he touched a small finger to her fist. ‘’lene,’ the boy cooed, looking at the little girl with complete wonder. Helios lent forward to kiss his baby sister’s hand, and then her cheeks gently.

‘Do you like her?’ Effie asked, shooting a soft look to Haymitch next to her, before she watched the boy nod rapidly. She scattered his cheeks with kisses, peppering all over as he shrieked with laughter.

Liked her, he loved her, he didn’t quite understand the concept that she was too little to play with him just how he wanted. He put toys on her chest and next to her face, he went so far as wrapping her fingers around one of his toy cars. Even though she couldn’t play, he played with her.

‘Relax, Effie, he’s not going to hurt her, they’re too close to the ground for that.’ He chuckled, proud of himself as he wiped at a mysterious wetness on his shoulder; it smelt faintly of apple juice.

‘This is serious, even if he won’t hurt her, you should have been watching. What if I wasn’t here? What if he didn’t come find me? Maybe someone could have snuck in and snatched them!’ She was quietly hysterical, the wild look in her eye told him she was far more upset than what she was showing through her words.

‘Okay, I’m sorry. Effie, I was tired, I closed my eyes, I didn’t realise I’d fallen asleep. I am sorry. I promise.’

‘Yeah, well, if you wanted to close your eyes all you had to do was ask, Haymitch, hell, I would like a nap. You weren’t the one up with her all night.’ It still surprised him how easily she could snap. It wasn’t just lack of sleep due to a newborn. It was lack of sleep mixed with a horrible life experience. They were both on their toes about their children, fearful they would be taken in the night. Snow was dead, but that did not stop his revenge.

After four years, Effie was still shaky on her feet in his home, not only distrusting that he wanted her there but she sat in wait for the day it would be taken away.

‘Hey,’ he reached for her, ensuring his hand had a hold of her arm before he stepped closer to her. ‘Give me the baby, okay.’ He saw the frightened look in her eye, the reluctance to let her daughter go. They really needed to call Dr. Aurelius. ‘I’ll take her and Helios straight to Peeta, you need a nap.’ He only wanted to be helpful. Hell, they used to live on the days were they antagonised each other until one of them snapped, now it was all about not stepping too far over the line.

Effie eyed him wearily, she had already misplaced her trust in him once for the day. She was, however, exhausted.  
‘Just for an hour, we’ll go to the bakery.’ She nodded slowly, turning to the quiet and watchful Helios, asking him if he wanted pastries from Peeta. The boy was only eager to go, barely kissing his mother on the cheek he was practically out the door before his father was even ready.

***

‘You know, I am sorry about this afternoon.’ Haymitch spoke, leading with a kiss to her cheek as he dropped to the bed beside her. Effie nodded. She was quiet, watching her daughter feed at her breast silently, trying to find the words.

‘I shouldn’t have snapped.’

‘No, you were right. He probably would have dragged her out into the yard and tripped over the step.’ He was being half humours. Haymitch wouldn’t underestimate his son’s ability to get into trouble. ‘But,’ he voice became serious, ‘if there is anything Helios taught me about babies, it’s that they’re resilient.’ Effie half shrugged. ‘You smacked his head against the counter when he was a month old, don’t even pretend that didn’t happen!’ Haymitch was laughing, the memory constantly on repeat in his head. Effie was completely mortified.

‘I didn’t damage him, Haymitch. You say it as though it was a scandal.’ She looked at him, light in her eyes.

‘Exactly, he was fine. So what if he drops her, she’ll be fine too. And it was a scandal, you should have seen the look on your face!’ He roared causing the baby in her mother’s arms to flinch. Apologising silently, Haymitch cupped his little daughter’s head, stroking the light hair with his thumb as he watched her for a moment.

‘I overreacted,’ Effie admitted, ‘I’m exhausted, Haymitch.’ He nodded, it wasn’t something that he hadn’t noticed.

‘You need to speak to Dr. Aurelius.’

‘I need an infant who will sleep through the night.’

‘That won’t help your anxiety, Princess.’ He replied nonchalant, his back to her as he reached for his book on the nightstand. Effie couldn’t help but smile, almost five years after the war, making it close to eleven years of their knowing each other, and the way he said _princess_ had managed to make her smile. Not always. In the beginning of their partnership she hated it, but she had grown accustom to it as the years went by. It soothed her now, a simple comfort, a light reassurance; they were all right.

**Author's Note:**

> Note:Helios was the personification of the sun in greek mythology and Selene, his sister, was the goddess of the moon. Just a little insight into why I picked their names.


End file.
